Oliver, Mules stun PCA in semis

PLYMOUTH — Andrew Oliver wanted the big stage. He wanted Manchester. He wanted Northeast Delta Dental Stadium. He wanted his final high school baseball game to be the Division IV championship.

After seven sparkling innings — against the league's most dominant team — that's just where Oliver and the Newmarket baseball team are going.

Oliver held powerful top seed Portsmouth Christian to just three hits, and the fifth-seeded Mules erupted for four runs in the fourth inning Thursday to nail down a 4-0 upset in the Division IV semifinals at Plymouth State University.

Oliver walked four, hit a batter and scattered five strikeouts. Better yet, he stranded seven runners in scoring position to notch one of the biggest wins in program history.

"Words can't even describe how good this feels right now," the senior right hander said. "We've all been waiting for this. This whole season we've been talking about Fisher Cats Stadium and how we want to get there. We just did it. We just proved it."

The Mules improved to 15-4 and will make their second finals appearance in four years next Saturday, June 16, in Manchester. They will play No. 3 Sunapee, which advanced with a 4-2 win over No. 7 Pittsfield.

Newmarket advanced by becoming the first team this season to beat PCA. The Eagles went 14-0 in the regular season and finished 16-1 overall.

"It was a tough time for us to lose our first game," PCA coach Marty McKenna said. "Today I have to tip my cap to Oliver. He pitched great. We put the ball in play, but it was right at their guys and they made the plays. It's just that one inning that cost us."

Sam Morin opened the bottom of the fourth inning with a single to center, the start of four straight Newmarket batters reaching base.

After Morin's single, Jeff Carmichael was struck by PCA pitcher Sean McKenna, putting two on with no outs. Kevin Clougherty then bunted toward the third-base line. The throw back across the diamond sailed wide of the first baseman to score Newmarket's first run.

Nick Chapman hit a hard ground ball to third that was booted, Rob McGloughlin lined an RBI single off the leaping third baseman and the Mules suddenly had a 4-0 lead.

"We worked on hitting line drives all year," Oliver said of the outburst. "We've struggled hitting line drives. Today it all came together."

The Eagles threatened with baserunners in every inning but the sixth, when Oliver worked a stikeout, pop out and ground out for his only 1-2-3 frame. His greatest escape came in the seventh, when he hit the leadoff batter and gave up a single to No. 8 hitter Matthew Salloway to allow the first two runners aboard. But whether it be clutch pitches, great defense — or a little bit of luck — the day belonged to Oliver and the Mules.

Continuing in the seventh, Oliver came back to strikeout No. 9 hitter Andrew Cunningham, who as the ball bounced under the crouch of McGloughlin behind the plate, took off running for first base.

A batter can reach safely on a third strike if the catcher drops or traps the ball — but only if first base is vacant. With runners at both first and second, Cunningham was immediately called out by the umpire. But Cunningham's quick sprint toward first caught the attention of McGloughlin, who gathered the ball and fired a high throw that tipped off the glove of Chapman at first.

Confusion abounded — both baserunners took off running as the ball trickled just a few feet away, and Morin, Newmarket's shortstop, ended a rundown between first and seocnd base with a tag to the runner's back to cap a wild double play. Pinch-runner Hayden Thibodeau went from second to third on the play.

"The first base coach thought that the overthrow had gone farther away," coach McKenna said of the exchange. "So that was unfortunate. It was just a bad read on the overthrow and then we got caught in the rundown. With one out we probably could have lived with that, but the double play there really took some momentum from us. It was just a tense game and sometimes it's hard to be perfect in those tense situations."

Oliver got PCA leadoff hitter Ryan McKenna — who hit a bomb to the gap for a ground rule double in the third — to fly out deep to Clougherty in center to end the game.

Newmarket's bench emptied and charged the outfield to mob him.

"We played our best game," McGloughlin said. "That's what we had to do to beat them and that's what we did.

Ryan McKenna, a freshman, started and pitched two scoreless innings, though he stuggled with his command and fired 40 total pitches. Sean, his older brother, took over in the third and pitched five full innings of relief. He had two strikeouts and surrendered seven hits and one walk.

"We hit two of the best pitchers we faced all year long," Oliver said. "I give Ryan McKenna credit and I give Sean McKenna credit. They're both awesome players, both undefeated in the regular season. We just played our game and we were the better team today."

McGloughlin worked two walks to go with his RBI single in the fourth. Oliver and Clougherty added two singles apiece.

Justin LeDuc, Ryan McKenna and Salloway had PCA's only hits in the game.

Newmarket avenged a pair of regular-season losses to the Eagles. One was a 7-0 thumping on May 23 that ended the Mules' 10-game win streak. But Newmarket got the win that counted.

"I can't explain it," Oliver said. "It's just everything is coming together at one time and we're all playing awesome."